Cupcakes For a Cause

I think I managed to make it to the ripe old age of about 24 before I broke down and sampled sweet potato casserole.  Something about the combination of vegetables and marshmallows just always made me wary.  Probably for the same reason that I won't drink that V8 Splash "fruit" juice.  They may have the kids fooled, but I know there's carrots in there.  Eventually I realized that sweet potato casserole is just a dessert masquerading as a side dish, and now it's a staple that I always look forward to this time of year.

When fellow blogger Thrifty DC Cook asked me to donate cupcakes for a bake sale benefiting the DC State Fair, I was more than happy to oblige.  This year's inaugural fair was an excellent event, and the idea of the bake sale was a focus on local ingredients with a fall theme.  While I couldn't manage to find any locally-grown marshmallows (that's a joke, people), I was inspired by another DC food blogger--Department Of Plate--to incorporate my new found love of sweet potato into cupcake form for the fall theme.  The bake sale is going on now at the 14th & U Farmer's Market, so DMVers act NOW NOW NOW and these cupcakes can be yours!  Come out between 9am-1pm to support the DC State Fair, meet some of the most awesome bloggers ever, and sample all of the excellent local vendors.

A couple of notes:  this recipe is adapted from Martha Stewart's cupcake tome--I halved it, as the original makes an astounding 28 cupcakes.  Also, I used a marshmallow frosting for this, but feel free to just use mini-marshmallows in honor of the original casserole.  And, if you don't have a kitchen torch, you can always just toast your topping of choice by popping them under the broiler for a few seconds, being careful not to catch your cupcake wrappers on fire, of course. Safety first.

Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes
2 pounds (about 3 medium) sweet potatoes, scrubbed
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp coarse salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups miniature marshmallows (or marshmallow frosting, below)
Candied pecan pieces (optional, below)

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Pierce sweet potatoes with a fork and place on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake until completely soft and juices begin to seep from the potatoes and caramelize, about 1 hour. Reduce oven to 325°.

2. When cool enough to handle, slice potatoes in half lengthwise and use a fork to scrape the flesh from the skin into a bowl, discarding skins. Mash potato with fork until smooth. (You should have about 2 cups.)

3. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and both sugars until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in mashed sweet potatoes and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add the flour mixture in three batches, beating until completely incorporated after each.

4. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, about 28 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.
5. Make topping: Dividing evenly into 4 mounds, place marshmallows on a large baking sheet or nonstick baking mat. Using a small kitchen torch, brown marshmallows all over (or heat under the broiler). With an offset spatula, transfer mounds to cupcakes, and top with candied pecans.

Marshmallow Frosting
8 eggs whites
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1. Place egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a saucepan with simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and whites are warm to the touch, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Transfer bowl to electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat, starting on low speed, gradually increasing to high, until stiff, glossy peaks form, 5 to 7 minutes. Add vanilla, and mix until combined. Makes enough to frost 2 dozen cupcakes.

Candied Pecans
1/2 cup pecan pieces
4 Tbs water
4 Tbs sugar

1. Place pecans, water and sugar in a small saucepan.  Stir to dissolve the sugar, and bring to a simmer. Simmer 7-10 minutes, until golden and coated.  Remove pecans to parchment and allow to cool.

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Apple-Cranberry Streusel Pie

I'm a big fan of pie. Homey and unpretentious, pie is difficult to mess up and always comforting. In terms of flavor choices and individual servability, I'd even be willing to give it my vote as the next "it" dessert. Local pie rebel Dangerously Delicious is clearly ahead of the curve on this one.

I made this pie a few weeks ago, on Columbus Day, when I happened to find myself with a blissful 4-day weekend and unseasonably warm temps. After the requisite three days of sitting around doing nothing, I finally managed to motivate not only to make this pie, but to actually drive out to Stribling Orchard in Markham, Virginia and pick the apples myself. How quaint.

Blue Ridge views from Stribling Orchard

There is definitely something rewarding about using local produce, and I may have even gone a little local-overboard by buying about 2 pounds of Stribling's homemade honey. Oops. In other words...stay tuned for honey-based recipes :)

I also made pie crust from scratch for this one, but it honestly wasn't that great (I found it too tough, though that can be a plus for juicy fruit pies) so I won't include the recipe here, but feel free to substitute your own favorite or store-bought crust. The streusel topping, however, was easy and amazing. If you don't have a pastry cutter for this step, you can just use two knives to cut the butter into the flour--not as effective, but much more ninja-like.

Ninja Pie

Apple-Cranberry Pie

FILLING

Juice of 1 orange

Zest of 1 orange

5 cups of peeled, sliced apples (approximately 5 medium apples)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped (if frozen, do not thaw)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

TOPPING

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons oats

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Make or purchase one recipe of your favorite pie crust.  Preheat oven to 400. Roll pie dough out into a 12-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough in the pie pan and refrigerate while you make the filling and topping.

2. To make filling, mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl. To make topping, mix all ingredients together in a small bowl. The topping mixture should clump when pressed together.

3. Add filling to cold pie crust and scatter topping all over the filling. Bake at 400 degrees until the juice in the center of the pie is bubbling, about 1 hour. If the crust or topping becomes too dark, cover the pie loosely with foil.

4. Transfer to a wire rack; cool completely before serving.

Easy as pie!!

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I Left My Blog in San Francisco

Ok, not really. But I definitely could have left my heart there after this past weekend's trip to the city by the bay for the second annual Foodbuzz Blogger Festival.

While I will be the first to admit that I use travel as an escape (not always...but often), the Foodbuzz Fest was an excellent chance not only to indulge in the escapism of jetting cross-country for the weekend and to leave east coast worries behind, but also to meet up with hundreds of other foodies just like me. 

It was refreshing to be able to crouch underneath a table in order to take ridiculously close-in shots of a meal without wondering what other people would think of you...because there was actually line forming of others who wanted that exact angle for their photos too.  Or to overhear a conversation beginning with "Well, let me tell you about the different tiers of lettuce..." and actually be intrigued.  The Foodbuzz Fest was three days of unrepentant foodie bliss, and I highly recommend it to any other food bloggers, epicureans, gastronomes or armchair chefs out there that want to get more involved in food and the culture of the way we eat. 

Unfortunately the weekend was somewhat marred by a Sunday rain delay at the San Francisco airport which resulted in my spending the next 24 hours (aka 2 cab rides, 1 plane trip, 1 train trip and 5 hours of driving) attempting to get home.  But, let me tell you, there is nothing like freezing your @$$ off in the middle of November while passing the hours of 1am-5am at Philadelphia's 30th St. train station--abandoned but for the motley cast of homeless crazies and a similarly appointed McDonald's--to give you the time to get some perspective on your life.  So, I'd say a net gain overall :)

And now, for the pics:

A floor full of foodies surrounded by amazing samples. Heaven.

And we're not talking cocktail weenies, but stuff like this.  Um, yes, please.

Absolutely the most amazing sandwich I have ever eaten. Porchetta sandwich from Roli Roti...fatty, tender pork with a crisp, salty/sweet crust. *drool*  DC: GET ON THIS!

Cool chili/bay leaf display at the vegetarian gumbo stand

Like me, he was just happy to be there.  Until next year!!

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Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes aka When Blogs Collide

Writing a baking blog, I always get a thrill when friends regale me with tales of their baking exploits, which usually start out more often than not with something along the lines of, "I followed the recipe exactly! I don't know what happened!" I know baking can be intimidating, so I always encourage novice bakers to just take the plunge, and was more than excited when a friend and fellow blogger asked for my help tackling Hummingbird Bakery's pumpkin spice cupcakes and cream cheese frosting.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid I might not have been much help on this one.  Between needing to find a converted recipe from the original metric instructions, attempting to double it, realizing halfway through that one of the directions had clearly been omitted in the cookbook, and mangling a hand mixer beyond repair...well, as I've said before, let's just say that sometimes you really can be a lot less exact in your baking and still end up with a delicious end product.  Because these cupcakes were GREAT! Super moist and delicious, these cakes were definitely a hit.

Check out the recipe, more on Hummingbird, and Tanya's take on the international flavor of Halloween here at Parisian Spring.

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Oh Fudge

In a similar vein as whoopie pies, fudge may not be the most glamorous of desserts, but it's definitely one of those homespun standards that always manages to make it onto the dessert side of the table at family potlucks and always manages to disappear--piece by addictive piece. 

While this recipe for Spiced Pumpkin Fudge from Libby's is not exactly difficult, it IS time consuming.  The first step requires you to heat sugar to soft-ball stage (234-240 degrees, you will need a candy thermometer or the good old bowl-of-water test) while constantly stirring...and stirring...and stirring.  If your arm is cramping up and you're starting to sweat from the heat of a pot of boiling sugar, you're on the right track...keep stirring.  Before you get started you may want to crank up some tunes and crack open a bottle of pumpkin ale to help pass the time.  That's what helped me at least :) 

I do have a sneaking suspicion that the refusal of the sugar to reach soft-ball stage in a reasonable amount of time may have something to due with the fact that I had to use dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar.  Oops.  But I'd love to hear about your experience it if anyone else gives this recipe a try!  The fudge was still delicious even though I finally threw in the towel (the spoon?) while the sugar was still only at 220 degrees.  Shh, don't tell.

Spiced Pumpkin Fudge
2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter or margarine

2/3 cup (5 fl.-oz. can) evaporated milk

1/2 cup pumpkin

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) white chocolate morsels

1 jar (7 oz.) marshmallow crème

1 cup chopped pecans

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Line a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with foil. 

2. Combine sugar, brown sugar, evaporated milk, pumpkin, butter and spice in a medium, heavy-duty saucepan. Bring to a full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring constantly, for 10 to 12 minutes or until candy thermometer reaches 234° to 240º F (soft-ball stage).

3. Quickly stir in morsels, marshmallow crème, nuts and vanilla extract. Stir vigorously for 1 minute or until morsels are melted. Immediately pour into prepared pan. Let stand on wire rack for 2 hours or until completely cooled. Refrigerate tightly covered. To cut, lift from pan; remove foil. Cut into 1-inch pieces. Makes about 3 pounds.

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Making Whoopie

Forgive the title; I couldn't help myself. 

With pumpkin spice season fully upon us, I couldn't wait to try out Martha Stewart's mini chocolate and pumpkin whoopie pies for a festive fall pumpkin carving party.  At first I thought it might be a little sadistic to bring pumpkin snacks to a pumpkin carving...but I got over it.

Although whoopie pies seem to be enjoying a surge in popularity recently--some even suggesting they are "the new cupcake"--I was shocked to discover how many of my friends had actually never even heard of whoopie pies.  "You're making pumpkin WHAT?" was the typical response.

If you are a whoopie novice, probably the best way to describe them is similar in concept to an oatmeal cream pie, but with cake instead of oatmeal cookies.  Some may try to tell you that a whoopie pie is a Moon Pie. They are NOT Moon Pies.  If you're getting technical, Moon Pies are commercial sandwiches of graham cookie and marshmallow creme dipped in chocolate whereas the whoopie is all cake and frosting.  I'd like to say that these whoopie pies were a total hit at the party, but there may have been an unfortunate forgetting-them-in-the-fridge incident.  Oops.  But *I* can tell you that they were delicious...I had about 6 of them.  Oops. 

For residents of the DMV, whoopies have officially invaded the area--get your fix from B. Hall, an area baker specializing exclusively in whoopie pies or also from pop-up baker Whoops! Bakeshop currently hawking pies at Mid City Caffe until hopefully opening a storefront next year.

A couple of notes: 1)  if you're using a dark metal pan you may want to reduce your oven temp. 2) Try to flatten your batter rounds a little bit as they tend to bake up rather than out. 3) These are MINI whoopie pies, people, so portion control on the batter.  Believe me, I know it's hard.  Or you could just get this whoopie pie pan from Williams-Sonoma.

Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

  makes about 20 sandwiches

Cookies:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup vegetable shortening

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar

1 large egg

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Filling:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup canned solid pack pumpkin

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

1. Prepare cookies: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside.

2. Place butter, shortening, and sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add egg; mix until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in half the flour mixture, then the milk and vanilla. Mix in remaining flour mixture.

3. Drop about 2 teaspoons dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies spring back when lightly touched, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to wire racks and let cool 10 minutes. Remove cookies from baking sheets and transfer to wire racks using a spatula; let cool completely.

4. Prepare filling: In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip together cream cheese, butter and confectioners' sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg; whip until smooth, scraping down the bowl as necessary.

5. Pipe or spoon about 2 teaspoons filling on the flat sides of half the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies, keeping the flat sides down.

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A Tour of Tiramisu

Next on my culinary tour of Italia, I couldn't wait to try out my go-to dessert, tiramisu, in its natural habitat.

While the origins of this trifle-like dessert are a bit cloudy (some even attributing its creation to a brothel where it was used to boost the energy of the clientel--the names does mean "pick me up" afterall...) the ingredients throughout the decades have remained the same: ladyfingers, eggs, marscarpone, coffee and liquor. Yes, please. 

My first taste was in Venice at the Ristorante al Teatro, adjacent to the Fenice Theater.  The food here was decent but I definitely recommend it on show nights for the added bonus of people-watching.  From their patio you have an excellent view of the local Venetians dolled up in their Italian finest for a night at the Fenice.  The first thing I noticed about the tiramisu (tiramisi?) in Italy was that it was typically served premade in individual dishes, rather than served in slab-like squares as if cut from a sheetcake a la the American style.  I found this particular version far too heavy on the coffee, leaving the bottom cake layers cold and soggy.  Otherwise I found the flavors to be well-balanced, if a little light on the liquor (No, I don't have a problem).

Unfortunately I don't have a photo, but my next tiramisu experience was in Florence, and was almost the exact opposite of my Venetian dessert.  I truly wish I had a picture, because the marscarpone filling was so heavy on egg yolks that it was in fact yellow.  Also served in an individual dish, this dessert came topped with about 1/2" of cocoa powder on top and, if you've ever had the unpleasant experience of eating plain cocoa powder, well, you can imagine the unplesant aftertaste.  Though I do remember that the cake wasn't soggy, I honestly can't remember tasting any hint of coffee or liquor as the eggy flavor was so overwhelming.  If you're a fan of custards, then this Florentine style tiramisu is definitely for you. 

While I'm glad I got to sample a taste of true Italian tiramisu, I think I'll be sticking to my own recipe for now.

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